Sports opening - Jasper, Ala.

The Daily Mountain Eagle newspaper in Jasper, AL, circulation 11,500 is seeking a sports reporter. The reporter will cover community, high school and junior college sports. The ideal candidate will have page design experience using QuarkXpress and photographic skills. Prefer candidates with 1-2 years of professional experience, but will consider recent grads with the right combination of drive, talent and experience. We are looking to fill this position as soon as possible and interviews will begin immediately. Applicants should email a resume, work samples and a letter explaining their interest to james.phillips@mountaineagle.com or fax material to (205) 221-6203, attn: James Phillips. For more information on the position, call (205) 221-2840 to speak to Managing Editor James Phillips or Sports Editor Johnathan Bentley.
03/31/09

 

This is a seven-day daily, and the sports editor is a nice guy.

 

ME's good people too. Don't know the sports editor.

 

Any idea about the pay for this job?

 

Low

 

How low? Below $25,000? Do newspapers expect all reporters to be single and live in boarding houses?

 

I'd say $25,000, maybe a little higher. The last guy drove an hour from Hartselle to Jasper every day. He worked there for at least three years, so it couldn't have been that bad.

As said before, the SE and ME here are good people. The paper does have its flaws. It's needed a redesign since 1995, and the workload on a two-man staff is always heavy. This would be a good job for a recent grad or youngster.

 

At least you have an interstate connection with both Birmingham and Memphis now, with I-22 nearing completion on the Birmingham end.

 

Single? Yes. Boarding houses? Maybe.

 

25 grand puts you in the top 25 percent of many towns in Walker County...

 

if I had to guess I'd say it's lower than that. this is the type of job for someone straight out of college with no attachments.

 

Recession hitting pretty hard, eh?